Packaging can create a lot of waste - 10 million tonnes of it a year in the UK alone. While axing wrapping all together may make sense for some products and companies, others may still need to wrap their goods. Why not use creative innovative techniques rather then bubble wrap and boxes? Afterall, edible, biodegradable and dissolving packaging is much cooler anyway. Here are 7 exceptionally interesting ways to reduce the amount of waste we send to landfill.
1. Popcorn Packaging
(Image: Wikipedia)
Yes that is right you can use popcorn for packaging, (popped and without the butter or salt of course)! Use it instead of Styrofoam pellets to protect your goods and wares. Popcorn is 60% lighter than using shredded paper which means it takes 10% less energy to transport. Scooby dubious about it protecting fragile items? In tests done with a light bulb sent in the post surrounded by popcorn the bulb survived 100%. Plus you can compost it or feed it to the birds!
2. Edible Packaging
We don't recommend you eat your popcorn packaging but here are some edible options - a bit like those clever bread bowl for soup! Now there are more ways to eat your packaging. An edible food covering has been made from the dairy by-product whey. It could be used as coating on food products to cut down on conventional packaging and increase shelf lives. The film can also be made with nutrients in it to boost the nutritional value of food. Although the packaging hasn’t become mainstream yet research is being conducted into how to make it everyday practice.
3. Mushroom Packaging.
(Image: igreenspot)
Mushroom packaging is also a great alternative to plastics. The tasty pizza topping is a fantastic way to package your goods because they don’t need pesticides or herbicides to grow. Because they are grown and not manufactured they use 98% less energy to produce and are also compostable. It can be grown into whatever shape you need for your goods and only takes a about a week to grow. Compare this to 15 years for trees to grow for cardboard and the 65 million years for Styrofoam to be produced and you'll see why it's better! They called it ultra-rapid renewable and we call it ultra-impressive.
(Image: Whateverdream)
4. Transforming Packaging
Transforming packaging is just plain cool. Starts off life as your box and ends up as your purchase. What's not to love? Check out this lamp where the box becomes the shade. And these t-shirts come in packaging that transforms into a hanger. And don’t forget about the awesome vacuum that we wrote about!
(Image: Ben Huttly)
5. Dissolving and Plantable Tags
When you buy new clothes they come with tags on them, right? But what happens to them? They get thrown into the bin (recycling we hope). Well not anymore with these nifty tag ideas, you can either dissolve or plant them!
Melt Tag have come up with a tag that is made from a combination of soap and paper that dissolves in water. So you can just pop your clothes into the washing machine, tag and all, and it dissolves to become the soap! Genius. Melt tag is still in the concept phase but hopefully it’ll be hitting a store near you in the near future.
Plantable tags are another funky tag idea. Biodegradable and made from flower seeded paper and soy ink, all you need to add is a little bit of sunshine and water for flowers to start blooming!
(Image: Renest)
6. Rethinking Packaging
Rethinking packaging is all about questioning our conventions when it comes to how things are, should be and could be packaged. Here are some interesting products that are shaking up the norm when it comes to packaging.
- Tooth paste in tab form, no longer a paste in a tube!
- Shoes in a bag and not a box by Puma!
- Newton Shoes in cardboard shell instead of a whole box!
- Boxed Water- who says water has to come in a bottle?
7. No Packaging At All!
(Image: stylebyme)
We've told you before about unpackaged and in.grediants- both food shops that you bring your own containers and the produce is all loose in the shop. Two products that don’t have to have packaging that you might surprise you are shampoo and conditioners. That is right you can buy them in solid form and eliminate the bottle. It's just like soap for your hair anyway so why not take on the same form? Lush have a great selection of these gems- with no compromise for your locks. One Hair Biscuit also make solid hair care (although they come in slightly more packaging). These little liquid savers are perfect for traveling. For tips on making your own and how to be very snazzy click here!
Who knew there was so much to packaging?! And there are even more package innovations to write about, but we'll save that for another time.
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